It Took Three Minutes
by DangerousDreams
Summary: *Spoilers*  Rukia can't handle being away from Ichigo; she goes back to see him again.  Slightly angsty...  T for a very, very slight innuendo, except it's not even an innuendo.  New chapters: They meet again... ish...?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Spoilers for the newest chapters of BLEACH. Like, newest as in online, not Shonen Jump. Yepp. [*SPOILERS BEGIN*]

Yeah, so when Rukia faded, I freaking bawled. Geez. Although I'm hoping that maybe it'll be like when she stayed in SS, maybe it seems like she'll be gone from the series forever, but maybe she'll come back. Geez. That whole scene was done BEAUTIFULLY though, ne? Just that one panel of them standing, looking at eachother, and her starting to fade away, was so gorgeous. And then when it showed her for the last time, with just her face, looking up at him, she looked so sad and heartbroken ;-; Poor Rukia! Poor Ichigo! Gosh… So sad. NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS THEY WILL ALWAYS BE SOULMATES. ALWAYS.

It Took Three Minutes

It took about three minutes since he could no longer see her before she completely lost it. Those three minutes were spent standing, frozen, numb. Then it hit her all at once, and she began to sob uncontrollably. It was a terrifying experience for her. She'd never cried this hard, not ever. And it was completely out of her control. She couldn't move. She couldn't even put into words _why _she was crying. It was more than losing Ichigo. It was more than knowing he couldn't see her. It was as if somebody had torn out her heart, but cruelly made sure that she was still alive. She just fell to the ground, right there, crying so hard she felt like she would die. And she wasn't sure if Orihime and the others could see her breaking down like this. If they could, she didn't care.

It lasted for only three minutes, although she felt like it was hours. But suddenly, she stopped crying. It was as abrupt as a faucet turning off. There was just no more tears. She shook.

"Kuchiki," a voice said. She looked up to see that Toushiro Hitsugaya was standing above her. "I've been sent to come get you," he said. She wasn't sure if he had seen her breakdown. She hoped he hadn't. She got up without a word, and they shunpoed away.

~000~

He wasn't sure if this was a good idea. She had asked him to help her train, which was of course always good. But he was fairly positive that she was in no condition to fight. He decided to go fairly easy on her. Matsumoto was definitely worried about the petite shinigami. He was too, although it would take a lot to make Toushiro Hitsugaya say he was concerned about someone.

Three minutes into the training, he knew it was a bad idea. She was pale, shaking, and moving extremely slowly. She kept saying she was fine to his worried inquiries, but he knew she wasn't. The emotional sadness was beginning to take its toll on her physically, too. When she missed dodging an extremely obvious attack from Hyourinmaru, he sheathed his sword and quickly made sure she was alright. As soon as he was positive there were no serious injuries, he shook his head.

"Look, Kuchiki-san, with all due respect, you're obviously not fine. And… If you want, I could arrange for a short visit to the World of the Living. I know you miss him," he said hesitantly.

He felt his heart break a little at the amazingly hopeful look that washed over her face. He didn't want it to have to come to this. He knew that if she went back there, she'd only reopen the still fresh wounds. But none of them had ever seen her in this bad of a funk, and he really was willing to do almost anything at this point to fix it. All of them knew that seeing Ichigo was really the only thing to make it better, but no one had wanted to get her hopes up. Matsumoto was furious, almost threatening Yamamoto to find a way to get Ichigo's powers back. Of course, the General didn't sanction anything, but in their spare time most of the shinigami were researching possible ways.

"If it's not too much trouble, that would be wonderful, taichou," she said. He nodded regretfully.

~000~

She alighted on the windowsill, cringing at the familiarity. Every time anything reminded her of him [as everything invariably did], unbearable pain washed over her. Most people would scoff at the idea of being able to form a bond with someone in the short amount of time they'd known eachother. But they had. They were very deeply in tune with eachother. They would each trust the other with their own life. They formed a perfect team. They could carry entire conversations without saying a single word. Such was the closeness they had. And losing that so suddenly was like losing half of yourself.

She climbed down onto his bed. The covers were made a little messily, and she smiled, remembering many a night of her waking him up in the middle of the night to ask him a question about something in this world, and him answering impatiently. This would lead to more questions, and more, and more, until she would somehow end up crawling under the covers too and they'd talk until they both fell asleep. And then the nights when they'd both be rudely awakened by a Hollow and at the end of the fight they'd both be so exhausted [and usually cold] that it made more sense to just collapse into his bed, keeping eachother warm, then do all the work of going separate ways. It was completely platonic, and she held the memories fondly.

She walked to his desk, and saw a framed photograph. It was her and him standing in front of one of the cherry trees near their school in the springtime. She bent down to get a better look at it, when suddenly the door opened. She jumped, and dived towards the closet, when she realized it was Ichigo, and he couldn't see her.

He was coming from school. He was still in his uniform, and he had slung his schoolbag unceremoniously onto the bed. He ran a hand tiredly through his bright hair, scowling. He glanced at the picture on his desk and he looked a little less angry. She drank all of this in, just staring at him for a long moment. Then he walked to the bed and sat down. He kicked off his shoes and lay down, still in his uniform, folding his arms behind his head. His eyes slowly closed, and soon he was asleep.

She shook herself, breaking the spell that had fallen over her. She looked at him, sleeping there, for a full three minutes. Then she smiled softly and sat down on the bed next to him, almost expecting him to wake up, asking her what she wanted to know this time. When he didn't, she lay down next to him, wrapping her thin arms around his chest. Even though he didn't even know she was there, it was still unimaginably comforting for her. She breathed in and out peacefully, slowly. And slowly, peacefully, she fell asleep.

He woke rested. He felt more peaceful than he had in months. His mother used to say that every time you got a good sleep, it was because an angel was there with you. He smiled. It was silly, but a cute saying.

He got up, and realized he was still in his uniform. He opened his drawer, looking for a shirt to change into. Suddenly, he cocked his head to the side. One of his shirts was missing. His Nice Vibe shirt. That was odd, he knew for a fact it had been there this morning…

Then it dawned on him and he smiled. Rukia.

~000~

She folded the shirt carefully and placed it under her pillow. He surely wouldn't mind that she took it. She grinned a little sadistically. It was no accident that she'd taken his favourite shirt. Oh well, he could deal with it. She wanted a memento of him. It was like a little good luck charm she wanted to take with her.

And it must have worked, because one month later, they began developing new technology that would help him eventually get his spiritual powers back.

A/N: Eh, I'm not quite satisfied with it [Other Self: Are you _ever_ satisfied? Me: Of course not.] . I don't think she's _too_ OOC in how much she misses him. To be honest, even if their relationship is totally platonic, they would still miss eachother insanely much, ne?


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I LOVE rain. SO much. It's by far my favourite weather.

Um, spoilers and stuff. And I don't own BLEACH obviously.

Also, I apologize that there wasn't much build-up to this. I may post something else later about how they figured out how to get his powers back. But this just came into my mind unbidden and I had to write it. Sooo.. I apologize for not doing anything angstier .

It was bitterly ironic that every time in his life he'd been overcome with despair, the skies had wept also.

His mother had been cruelly taken from his young self. He hadn't understood then why his great mother, his wonderful, kind, warm mother had died. He hadn't understood why he hadn't been the one to die. He couldn't be as amazing as she was. He couldn't make everything alright. He couldn't comfort his baby sisters just by _being _there. He wished that he had died rather than her.

And the rain fell.

~000~

When the fact that he wasn't going to beat these two shinigami and take Rukia back triumphantly, that they were going to leave, bringing _her _with them, finally hit, it brought with it the familiar drops.  
It felt as though the tears he had seen in her eyes, those eyes that he had only know for two months but had captivated him, that he'd seen happy, sad, confused [more often than not], victorious, laughing, _everything _but crying; it felt as though those tears had fallen from the sky. Her sadness had made the very _universe _despondent.

And he felt as though his heart had been ripped out. Again, he was the one left fine while someone else was taken. Again, someone amazing, wonderful, perfect, had been so unfairly sentenced. Again, his whole world had been torn off its axis.

And the rain fell.

~000~

He now separated his life into three parts: Before Rukia, Rukia-era, and After Rukia. He didn't know how he would cope in the After Rukia time.

It was Day 1, After Rukia. He looked out the window in his bedroom [the room that seemed unbearably empty without her, the room that was ten times brighter when she was there, even if she was sleeping in the closet, the room that now was suffocating him] at the street.

And the rain fell, in fat drops onto the grey pavement, turning it black.

~000~

"Ichi-nii, take your umbrella~!" Yuzu called to him right before he stepped outside. He looked outside and saw that it was indeed raining. He cursed. Just what he needed today. He was on the way to do grocery shopping for his father, who was sick and needed Ichigo to do _everything _around the house. Even things that he wouldn't have done even if he was well, like painting the living room. With four coats of paint. He sighed. Now he needed to go get some medicine, because the kind he'd gotten wasn't the "right brand". His father was acting like a pregnant woman.

He grabbed the black umbrella resting in the corner. "Bye, Yuzu, Karin!" he tossed over his shoulder as he left.

It had been fifty-eight days since she had gone.

He wondered if she was watching him right now. He looked around and shivered. _Weird…_ It felt as though someone had walked over his grave.

"Move over," a voice said. He looked down, and for a moment thought it was perfectly normal that Rukia was trying to get under the umbrella. Then he thought he must have been hallucinating. Then he didn't know what to think. He just stopped and gaped at her.

"Do… Do shinigami even get wet?" he asked. _Really? _His inner voice* screamed. _Of all the cool, suave, awesome one-liners you could have just said? "Do shinigami even get wet?'? What is WRONG with you?_

"Of course we do," she said irritably, "and I'm getting soaked, so if you wouldn't mind…"

And suddenly their eyes met. Her eyes were suspiciously wet, even disregarding the rain. They were still the same breathtaking violet he remembered. They both stood frozen, before she broke into a huge smile, and launched herself at him. She wrapped her arms as tightly as she could around his neck, and he let the umbrella fall as he held her.

It was like a missing puzzle piece had fallen into place, and now everything was complete again. They stood for three minutes without moving, letting the rain fall onto them, falling in rivulets through their hair, soaking them completely to the bone, and they couldn't have cared less.

The next day found one extra inhabitant of the Kurosaki household, with a very bad cold.

As he prepared some tea for his father and Rukia, he quickly caught a glimpse of his face in the reflection. He was smiling. He didn't think he would mind rain so much anymore.

*Not his Hollow voice. Just his inner voice. Like, you know, the _voices._ …What do you mean you don't hear them?

A/N: So I wrote this story based off of the first and last line. I typed it and just let the ideas flow… That's why it's not fantastic =w=;; Buuuuuuuu~ut I really like the idea of them meeting again like that, just so nonchalantly, then BAM! hug XD


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: _Italics _are memories. I don't own BLEACH.

She couldn't wait. Urahara had come to her that morning with the news. Ichigo's spiritual powers were now restored. He'd never be able to reach more than shikai, but he could still see ghosts and somewhat fight.

She didn't even have to ask. Byakuya had been there when Urahara had told her, and he simply nodded at her. She knew he didn't really approve of her being friends with Ichigo, or of Ichigo in general. But he was not going to tell her who she could or could not be friends with anymore. She thought he must have figured that Ichigo would have found a way to get into Soul Society anyway, and this way he wouldn't have to deal directly with him.

~000~

It hadn't been that long since she'd last come to visit him, but the fact that she knew he'd be able to see her now made her breath catch in her throat when she saw him.

He was walking slowly down the sidewalk, under a black umbrella. The rain was falling rather hard, but he didn't seem to notice the stray drops that made their way under the umbrella. She was getting soaked.  
And suddenly she grinned devilishly. Why shouldn't he get soaked, too?

_"Hey!" she yelled, safe and dry for now in the doorway, facing the blustery outdoors. He turned, holding the umbrella tightly. The way he acted sometimes, you'd think that he'd melt if he got any water on him. _

_ "What?" he said irritably. _

_ "Shove over, I'm gonna get wet," she said rudely.  
He raised an eyebrow at her tone of voice. "Get your own umbrella," he said back snidely._

_ Suddenly, she laughed and launched herself out of the warmth that was the doorway to his house, without her shoes on, and charged him. Before he realized what was happening, she'd knocked the umbrella out of his hand and stolen it._

_ "Rukia!" he said angrily. He was getting soaked now, and she was fine under the umbrella. She'd barely gotten wet when she'd run out the door. Only her socks were dripping wet. She laughed at his face and stuck out her tongue._

_ "That's what you get for not giving a lady your umbrella."_

She prepared to sneak up behind him and knock the umbrella away from him, but for some reason, she stopped. She bit her lip as tears pinpricked behind her eyes. Gods, she missed him.

Before she could think twice about it, she walked up to him and tried to get under the umbrella with him. He didn't notice her and she was half under the umbrella, half still in the rain.

"Move over," she said, just loud enough for him to hear.

He glanced down at her, and it took a second for his eyes to widen. He stopped. He opened his mouth, and she prepared for what he was going to say. Would he be happy? Mad? Would he say something heartfelt?

"Do…" She waited. "Do shinigami even get wet?"

She didn't respond for a moment, mouth agape. Did he really just say that? She felt like laughing and crying at the same time. Same old Ichigo. "Of course we do," she answered, and realizing he still hadn't budged, made to push him, "and I'm getting soaked, so if you wouldn't mind…"

Then she happened to catch his eyes. They were wide, wider than she thought she'd ever seen them. They were the same familiar warm amber colour, and she found herself having trouble breathing again. It felt like the world had frozen for a moment that hung in the air, and then she couldn't hold herself back anymore. She threw her arms around him, nor even caring if she knocked him over. Thankfully, she didn't, but he did drop the umbrella.

She buried her face in his shoulder, holding him as tightly as if her life depended on it. She could feel his warmth, and it felt like something in her chest just melted away so that she could finally breathe again. And she did. She just stayed there, breathing in the familiarity of it, of him. She felt the tears falling from her eyes, and she felt the wet ground underneath her feet, and she felt the rain falling harder than ever, but she didn't care. She was in this one moment.

It seemed like both an hour and a second before they let go.

She laughed and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, but as soon as she did rain got in them again, so she didn't even try anymore.

He still had the same look of shock upon his face, but at least he could say intelligent, relevant sentences now. "When did you get back?" he asked, still standing as close to her as he could without them touching.

She smiled. "Well, I've been back a few times, but you just couldn't see me. Your powers came back this morning."

He seemed to be wondering which part of the sentence to process first. "So you've been watching me?" he finally asked. He looked a little horrified. She laughed. She couldn't seem to stop smiling and laughing like an idiot.

"I've gone into your house a few times," she said, being vague purposefully. No way would she tell him how many times she'd gone into the Kurosaki house, just to stay in the familiarity of the little closet and listen to him breathing, or walk around the house and see what was going on with his family.

"That's right, you took one of my shirts," he said, grinning at her. "I guess you reeeaallly missed me…"

She smacked the side of his head. "Did not. Well, I did take the shirt. But it was just… just to demonstrate to the other shinigami how you humans dress. It wasn't because I _missed _you."

"Of course not," he said, grinning even wider. She snorted.

"Someone's a bit egocentric…" She leaned down to pick up the umbrella. Handing it to him, she said offhandedly, "Anyway, I brought it back. It's in my backpack."

He took the umbrella from her. "You brought a backpack? Are you planning on staying long?"

She threw him a sideways glance. "Depends. Do you think your father would let your orphan friend stay with you again?"

He laughed, and they continued walking, both of them under the umbrella.

A/N: In case you were wondering… In Japan when two people walk under the same umbrella it's generally a sign of love.


End file.
